


All Around Me

by herbologi



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Auror Draco Malfoy, Auror Harry Potter, Auror Ron Weasley, F/M, Healer Hermione Granger, Post-War
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-10
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:53:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23581153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/herbologi/pseuds/herbologi
Summary: Draco gets roped into working for Harry Potter as an Auror, and with Hermione as the department's designated healer, they are going to be seeing a lot more of each other than they have in the past three years since school ended.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy
Comments: 8
Kudos: 94





	1. An Agreement

“You’ve got to be bloody kidding me,” Draco Malfoy groaned from his favorite armchair in his study. He currently resided in a flat in the midst of muggle London, and there was a head that poked its way through the fireplace. Draco set down his copy of the Daily Prophet and looked up to see Harry Potter calling his name from the floo.

  
“Malfoy, I know I’ve been in contact recently and I know you’ve been receiving my letters. Have you given them any consideration?” Potter asked and Draco stood up to make his way to the fireplace and crouch down next to it. Pfft, consideration? Draco could practically laugh out loud at the fact that Harry Potter, the bloody boy who defeated one of the most powerful wizards of their time, had attempted to recruit him, an ex-Death Eater who had nothing to his name anymore.

  
“Potter, has it escaped your tiny pea brain that I was, in fact a Death Eater. The Auror office would never have me,” Draco muttered; Potter had contacted him several times about their desperate need for Aurors and seemed to think recruiting Draco was one of his greatest plans. He’d always tried to say things that would inflate Draco’s ego, but it never worked.

  
“Malfoy please, I know you’re one of the top students in our class for charms and defense. Not to mention your potion making skills that leave little to desire,” Potter tried charming him, but it wouldn’t work. Flattery would get him absolutely nowhere.

“You’re also more qualified to give us any insider information,” Potter tacked on to the end and even Draco had to admit he was right. With Snape gone, they needed someone who knew their way around identifying Death Eaters. Draco happened to be a bit more in the know as to what was going on, even if he had failed his task in sixth year.

  
“What would be in it for me?” Draco asked, his eyebrow raised as he looked down at the spectacled face in the fire. He couldn’t wait to hear the offer Potter had prepared, galleons wouldn’t appeal to him, and he didn’t want his manor back. Draco had a strong sense to start fresh. His mother was turning a new leaf and staying with his Aunt Andromeda, helping raise Teddy who was quite the handful and going through his terrible threes.

  
“As you know, I was able to pardon both you and your mother of all crimes,” Harry stated and Draco furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, “I would be able to work something out in order to have your father released,” Harry told him and Draco couldn’t help but gasp. His father did many horrid things, Draco fully believed the world was a better place with Lucius Malfoy in Azkaban. Potter must have been desperate to offer that.

  
“I would never ask for that,” Draco mumbled, standing up and dropping back into his armchair with a defeated sigh. He had to do this, didn’t he? “I will ask for one-time access to the manor, I have several items I would like to recover, and I understand it is still being held for evidence,” Draco bargained. Potter narrowed his eyes and gave a single nod. They were willing to give him anything, Draco had guessed they really needed the help and decided to concede.

  
“I can grant you supervised access to your family’s manor. If you take anything that is deemed suspicious, you agree to submit to a questioning and possible surrender of the item,” Potter stated, and Draco immediately agreed. He didn’t want anything other than a few of his personal valuables and some books.

  
“My other condition is that you don’t mention your previous offer to anyone. It wouldn’t look good for me if I chose to let my father rot in prison when I had a chance to free him,” Draco added and Potter laughed, nodding his head. Sure, it wouldn’t look good to the public, but he had no idea how his mother would take the news that he turned down the one chance at his father’s freedom. On one hand, she wouldn’t care. Maybe she would finally wake up and realize that Lucius had long been void of any emotional availability. But on the other hand, he was family. She had loved him, and that usually meant a lot in the pureblood community, to love one’s spouse.

  
“Okay Malfoy. Tomorrow you’ll need to come to the Auror Headquarters on level two of the Ministry. I’ll need you to sign some official forms and get a physical done to check your health. Is half eleven okay?” Potter asked, and Draco released a reluctant sigh.  
“Yeah, whatever. I’ll be there, what’s your office number?” Draco demanded and he could see Potter grinning wide. That smile was making Draco regret this before it even started.

  
“Just tell the witch at the front desk you’ve got an appointment with me, and she will tell you where to go from there,” Potter instructed. “I will see you tomorrow Malfoy and thank you. This really means a lot,” Potter thanked him before his head disappeared and the fireplace turned back to a normal color.

  
Draco eyed the Dark Mark on his arm and groaned, his head falling back in frustration as he used his right hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. One look at that and they’d send him packing. Draco had already listened to Kingsley Shacklebolt’s speech about all the jobs he wouldn’t be able to get. Even without a conviction, he still had the mark and employers would discriminate against him, and with good reason too.

  
After some time, Draco stood and decided it was best to settle in for bed as he wouldn’t be running on his own schedule the following day. He curled on his side and pulled the blanket up over his shoulders, his pet kneazle Medusa curled up at his feet and he was out like a light.

  
The following morning, Draco awoke to a soft purring in his ear. The sun was beaming through a gap in his curtains, nearly blinding him as he opened his eyes for the first time that day. He grumbled and sat up, running a hand through his messy blonde hair as he began overthinking the situation.

  
Surely, he wasn’t mentally stable enough to be an Auror. They would find something wrong with him, he knew they would.

  
But that didn’t stop Draco from pulling on his black trousers and a white, short-sleeve button up shirt. It didn’t stop him from using, quite frankly, too much gel and slicking his locks back. Nor did it stop him from choosing his best black overcoat, fastening it halfway and checking himself in the mirror. And finally, it didn’t stop him from glancing at the clock and realizing he would be a bit early, but still choosing to floo into the Ministry at that time anyways.

  
Draco glanced around and went to the wand registration desk first, receiving his visitor badge and earning himself a nasty look from the wizard who inspected his wand. He let out a sigh and nodded once he was instructed that he could continue, so he made his way to the lift, took it to the second level, and glanced around to find a sign that pointed him to the Auror Headquarters.

  
“I uh… I’m here to see Harry Potter,” Draco informed the woman at the front desk whom he thought would laugh in his face at this declaration.

  
“Yes of course. Mr. Draco Malfoy, I presume? He just got in, I can bring you to his office,’ she smiled warmly and motioned for Draco to follow her. Draco took in his surroundings, he knew quite a few of the witches and wizards in the office from Hogwarts. The hallway dead-ended and there was an open door with a plaque that read Harry’s name.

  
Draco vaguely remembered the time he had visited Mr. Shacklebolt here after his hearing, when he had his release forms signed by the man and endorsed by Harry Potter. He’d been here with his mother, but currently he hadn’t paid a visit to the woman in four months. Surely, she was getting anxious to hear from him but he just couldn’t bring himself to visit her.

  
“Malfoy, come on in!” Harry grinned, pulling Draco from his thoughts; it was as if he’d expected Draco to leave him hanging. Draco nodded his head and quickly thanked the witch before she left. “Sit down, please,” Harry grinned and motioned to a chair in front of his desk before sitting down himself and opening a file with a few documents inside.

  
“So, these documents are for both your protection, along with the Ministry’s. I have edited them with your conditions, and they are as follows,” Harry slid the first piece of parchment to Draco, he glanced quickly and read that it was a type of release form, “This is for your informed consent. This job can be dangerous, and you are signing not to consent to everything we ask, but to show that what you do consent to, and any danger you get put in is not our fault. We cover medical bills, but you aren’t able to sue the Ministry of Magic should you find yourself injured,” Harry explained. Draco took the quill and signed the form, dating it next to his name.

  
“This second form outlines our medical practices, sick pay, and your salary. I assume the amount is enough though I am open to negotiate,” Harry told Draco, who saw he had a thirteen thousand galleon salary for the year. That was incredibly generous as it was, and Draco didn’t see reason to negotiate, especially because of his medical necessities being covered on top of it.

  
“That’s… I agree to the stated salary,” Draco nodded his head and signed the bottom of the document with his initials. He handed it back to Harry and was slid one final document.

  
“We’ve gone over your personal medical health, but this form is for you to consent to bi-weekly check-ups so we can ensure both your physical and mental health. Of course, all costs are covered, but we need you to give your consent for those specific check-up results to be shared with us if anything alarming comes up in them. I’ll make it very clear that not every medical visit is shared, simply those we require, and it will only be examined by us should you have an injury that keeps you away from the job. This also helps us to decide whether or not you are able to receive time off, or if we could simply have you work from home,” Harry explained, and Draco took his time to look over the document. Bi-weekly check-ups were a bit much, but he supposed when you had such a mentally tasking job such as an Auror, they need to be sure you are in prime health, both physical and mental. Draco nodded and signed the final form, passing it back to Harry.

  
“Alright, now that that is in order, I’ll ask you to apparate to St. Mungos, your physical will be on the second floor, room two hundred and thirteen,” Harry explained to Draco who let out a sigh and stood up from his chair. “They will give you the forms afterwards, so I do ask that you come back once it is done. And once again, thanks Malfoy,” Harry stated breathlessly. Draco simply nodded and glanced at the fireplace in the corner of Harry’s office.

  
“Would it be okay if I took the floo from here? I don’t fancy the dirty looks from the crowd on the lower levels,” Draco muttered, and Harry’s face dropped. He nodded his head and grabbed a small pot, handing it to Draco. Of course, Harry hadn’t thought about the social challenges of hiring Draco.

  
“See you shortly,” Harry dismissed him, and Draco was tossing his powder into the fireplace.

  
“St. Mungo’s!” Draco shouted, and was immediately brought to the reception area of the hospital.


	2. The Physical

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco gets his physical done and completes orientation for being an Auror. Warning, a bit of testicle talk, nothing too graphic though! Hermione is a professional. (;

Draco appeared in a waiting room in St. Mungo’s, looked around and saw one wizard in a chair launch into a sneezing fit from the floo dust. The receptionist gave Draco a dirty look and offered the wizard the box of tissue on her desk, which he gratefully accepted. Draco let out a sigh and made his way to the lift, bringing it to the second floor, looking at a sign that guided him to the appropriate room.

He looked at a closed door with a plaque that read “213” and leaned in slightly, knocking gently on the door. What exactly did the physical exam entail? Would he be forced to run or show off his spellwork? Did he have to strip down? He had to admit, he was a bit out of practice. He hadn’t used any dueling spells since Voldemort fell, just standard ones that helped him around the house.

“Come in,” a witch’s voice from inside greeted him coldly, so he opened the door and closed it behind him, stepping into the center of the tiny room.

“Mr. Malfoy, please sit on the exam table,” a voice he recognized ordered him, so he followed instructions and sat on the little bench, his feet swinging nervously. He never did like visits to the doctor. He saw a ponytail that was overflowing with amber curls, a head of hair he never would forget.

“Granger?” Draco hissed, seeing the woman’s face for the first time in three years. In person, anyways. She was on the cover of the Prophet every other week with some incredible breakthrough. She took his breath away, he hadn’t been expecting her to be examining him, and wondered if it was too late to back out of all of this. Her thin face was framed by a few neat curls that spilled out of the elastic band on her head, and Draco had to remind himself to breath.

“Lay back please, I’d like to get this done as quickly as possible,” Hermione mumbled and held her wand up, the tip was radiating a bright, yellow light from the end. Draco followed her instructions silently and lay back on the table. Hermione waited for him to argue or speak up, insult her maybe. But he remained silent.

Hermione gently pressed the tip of her wand to his chest, humming as she worked her way down his sternum to his abdomen. He twitched a little when her wand pressed below his navel and looked up at him.

“Draco Malfoy is ticklish?” she mused with the tiniest smirk before flicking her wand and he watched the light turn green. “I’m er… going lower, I ask for your patience. The stiller you lie, the quicker it will be over,” Hermione informed Draco who nodded. He felt her wand on each of his hips, then it sunk down to his hip bones, and even further until he swore it was pressing directly against his dick. His cheeks flushed and he closed his eyes in discomfort.

“Does it hurt?” Hermione asked, a little breathless as she continued moving her wand across his more sensitive region. Think of your old, crusty ancestors Draco. Anything but a cute with playing around with your genitals. Wait, cute? Draco thought before letting out a sigh.

“No, just hurry up,” Draco muttered, and Hermione wasn’t able to hold back her scoff. Like this was any more pleasant for her. “Please,” he added as an afterthought, and Hermione could hardly hold back a cheeky grin. So, he had manners, after all this time she never would have guessed. Once she finished running her wand all the way down his legs, she cleared her throat.

“I’ll need you to undress for the visual exam. Unless you’d like to wait for a male healer to become available,” Hermione muttered under her breath and her cheeks were bright red.

“No um… it’s fine. Potter is expecting me back soon,” Draco rationalized, and he couldn’t help but grin at the sight of Hermione’s embarrassment.

Hermione handed Draco one of the little gowns and pulled a curtain to cover him. He thought it was moronic, she was going to see his whole bloody body anyways, why spare the decency of letting him undress in private? He complied and pulled even his socks off, pulling the robe hastily around himself before nervously clearing his throat.

“Alright,” Draco squeaked out, standing in place and watching as Hermione pulled the curtain back once more, stepping towards him hesitantly. She took a second to think about the best way to approach this, and decided to get the worst part over with.

“I’ll start with your feet and… work my way up,” Hermione informed him, and Draco nodded. She poked and prodded at his toes, pressed her thumb against his knees and watched as his leg gave a tiny jerk, and glanced nervously up at him before pulling the gown aside to reveal his… assets. Her rubber gloved hand reached up and she had to fight to keep her eyes open, cheeks red as she examined all the bits between his legs.

This wasn’t Draco Malfoy, she desperately tried to convince herself, it was some random patient. Hell, she had to examine Ron Weasley for Merlin’s sake, if she could get through that she could get through this. At least Draco was clean shaven which made her work much easier, Hermione thought to herself before gently pressing her index finger and thumb against his scrotum, reaching down to his thigh and brushing a patch against his skin and watching his testicle jerk in response. She did the same on the other side and then hurriedly covered him back up, staring at her clipboard for a moment so she didn’t have to look him directly in the eyes right after that.

“Okay, looks good, now if you’d like to tie the robe around your waist we are done down here, the rest is from the waist up,” Hermione quickly instructed, and Draco could absolutely die. It’s not as if he was trying to bed Granger, but he didn’t exactly want her spreading a fake rumor that he had a small dick. He did as she said and tied the robe around his hips loosely, watching her eyes rake up his abdomen and stop at his left arm.

Draco cleared his throat and moved his arm behind his back and looked at the floor in… was that shame? Hermione reached forward and grabbed his arm, brushing a finger over the dark patch with her eyebrows furrowed. She continued to gaze at the tattoo before looking up to meet the blonde’s eyes.

“Have you looked into getting this removed?” Hermione asked, her tone was quiet. Draco shook his head before shrugging his shoulders in attempt to dismiss the subject.

“I’ve tried getting rid of it, nothing worked,” Draco mumbled, and his eyes moved upwards to meet Hermione’s gaze. She kept eye contact with him, and he got lost in her dark eyes, it was like drowning in kindness.

“You haven’t had a medical professional look at it? I could do the procedure next week, it would only take a little under an hour,” Hermione offered, and Draco furrowed his eyebrows, “If you want to.” Hermione looked down at her feet, maybe Draco didn’t want his mark removed.

“That’s all it will take?” Draco asked and his eyes lit up. Hermione looked back at him and nodded her head with the tiniest smile on her face.

“It’s rather simple, especially now that he’s dead. We’ll finish this up and I can show you the informative pamphlet on it,” Hermione told him as she put a gloved hand on his chest. She went over each of his pectorals and slid her hand down to his abdomen. Her gaze stopped at a long scar that ran from his collarbone all the way down to disappear underneath where his robe was tied, outlined by a few smaller scars of similar depth. She frowned and motioned for him to turn around.

“Is that from… from sixth year?” Hermione asked, and Draco could feel his skin burning under her touch. He nodded and took a deep breath, glancing down at her small hand pressed against his chest. “Just a few questions, and then we’re done here,” Hermione murmured before pulling her hand away and grabbing her clipboard.

“Do you feel safe in your current household?” Hermione asked, and Draco nodded his head. “Have you ever had thoughts of harming yourself?” Hermione asked and Draco shook his head. She asked him about his travels outside of the country and if he’d ever heard voices that weren’t really there. After each question, she scribbled on the sheet and finally released a sigh.

“It seems that you’ve passed the exam with flying colors, I will go fill out this paperwork and sign a few sheets for you to hand in to Harry, please get dressed and I will meet you back here shortly,” Hermione’s soft, clear voice spoke. It was kinder than Draco had remembered, he wasn’t sure why she didn’t flat-out refuse to help him, she could have just passed him on to another healer.

Draco quickly pulled his clothes back on as instructed and sat down patiently in a chair next to the small table and leaned back. He had no clue what he was truly getting himself into, but maybe it would be better to have something to take his mind off things, having a job that kept him thinking at all times.

After a few minutes passed, there was a knock at the door and when Draco replied with a gentle “Come in,” Hermione poked her head in and gave him a tiny grin.

“So, here is your paperwork that you are to give to Harry,” she handed him a folder and then another afterwards, “This is the information on the procedure. I went ahead and booked you an appointment, it would be paid for by the Auror department as a standard necessary medical procedure. They don’t have to be informed of the nature of the appointment. I also understand any apprehension, so I included the number to call should you decide to cancel,” Hermione rushed out. Draco couldn’t help but feel his stomach whirl with happiness, she was making it all too easy for him and for once in three years, he didn’t feel judged. She wasn’t forcing him into this, just giving him the support and resources that he needed.

“Thanks Granger,” Draco let out a relieved sigh, “Or is it Weasley now?” Draco asked. He could slap himself for being curious, though he hadn’t seen a ring on her finger.

“I’m afraid not, Luna Lovegood got that pleasure,” Hermione giggled softly and then let out a laugh.

“Oh, did she now? How have I not heard about this?” Draco made conversation as Hermione offered to show him out.

“They’re not officially married yet, it’s been quite under the wraps,” Hermione giggled and shrugged her shoulders. “Please don’t make me see you until next week,” Hermione finally told him, and Draco furrowed his eyebrows. The only reason he’d need to see her before then was if he got injured, did she care about him?

“No promises. But I erm… I look forward to it, Granger,” Draco gave one last wave before he took some floo powder and tossed it into the fireplace with a whisper of “Harry Potter’s office, Ministry of Magic,” poking his head in. “Oi Potter, open up the connection, it’s Draco,” Draco hissed into the fireplace and as he waited for the flames to shoot up, turned around to see Hermione’s frame disappearing down the hallway.

Draco stepped through into Harry’s office and took a peek into one folder in order to determine the correct one to hand over to the man, placing it on his desk. Harry opened the folder and took a peek inside, seeing the note on the bottom that said pass.

“Great. Tomorrow we will start you on training, you’ll probably only have a half day. Afterwards, would it be a good time to bring you to your family’s manor?” Harry ran his eyes through his notebook before scribbling Draco in and looking up at the man before him.

“Uh, yeah. That sounds great,” Draco agreed easily and then bit his lip before speaking again, “Tonight, at the Macnair mansion. There will be six Death Eaters there, I don’t know who, but I was invited. I declined, however if you have the ranks for an ambush, I suggest it,” Draco told Harry, whose eyebrows shot up as Draco sat in the armchair in front of his desk.

“I don’t know if I’ve got the ranks for that at the moment, not tonight anyways. I’ve got two on medical leave, and one is required to do office work for another week due to injury,” Harry let out a groan as he flipped through his files.

“It’s okay. Maybe send a spy to get familiar with the grounds. That is where the meetings usually take place,” Draco suggested, and Harry nodded his head.

“Thanks, Malfoy. Unless you’d like to start training today, we are done here,” Harry informed him. Draco smiled and stood up with his folder clutched tight in his right hand as he waved with his left.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Potter,” Draco told the man before leaving his office and making his way back to wand registration, handing the visitor badge over. He showed his employment paperwork to the man at the desk with a smirk.

“I’ll be needing an employee badge so I can use that entrance,” Draco informed the man who gave him a dirty look before angrily flicking his wand to summon a badge, registering it to Draco’s wand identification.

“Thank you, sir,” Draco chuckled before taking the badge and made his way to the floo network, went back home to his flat, empty of life besides his kneazle who curled through his legs and mewled with pleasure that he was finally back home.


	3. The Manor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! Sorry this took so long to upload, and I also apologize for a short chapter. I am finishing up this semester of school within the next couple weeks, so I will be able to upload more regularly. I hope you enjoy this chapter for what it is, and I will try and upload once more by the end of the week!  
> Stay healthy and safe!

Draco arose the next morning and decided today to take a warm shower before he got ready in a simple black outfit as usual, his hair slicked back so it would stay out of the way. It was getting long and he wanted to cut it, but Draco decided he could put it off for a short amount of time.

  
After he fed Medusa, he scratched her head with a smile and stood up and decided he’d better move along before he was late for his first day of work. He was a bit nervous because being an Auror could be quite a physical job, Draco wasn’t in the worst shape, but it definitely wasn’t the standards they were looking for. He would start a workout routine when he got home and thought about what areas of his body to focus on.

  
After he apparated to the entrance of the ministry Draco punched in the number that was on his employee badge before being taken down in the red phone box, he glanced at his surroundings as he’d only come this way once before with his own father. It was a good thing he’d opted to not free the man, though he’d wonder if the guilt would eat at him when he would meet with his mom, he pushed those thoughts away and thought back to the previous day; the smile that Hermione gave him when he agreed to get his dark mark removed. The thought of her smile gave him goosebumps on his arms that he willed away in hopes that he could forget about her.

  
Once on the main level, Draco went to the normal lift and took it to the second level where he was met by Harry in the hallway, a grin on his face. Next to him with a man a little under Draco’s height with red hair and freckles, though his skin was slightly darker than the rest of the Weasley family, Draco could tell he was related.

  
“Draco, this is Charlie Weasley, he’ll be training you for the rest of the week,” Harry informed the man, “Today you’ll be learning legal spells we allow to apprehend criminals.”  
Draco eyed Charlie, and though he seemed a bit shorter, he was also broader and more physically fit than he was. Draco was tall and quite lanky, only the slightest definition in his arms. He nodded his head once and Charlie waved for him to follow.

  
“We have a special training arena, and the rules are simple. No unforgivables, and no dark curses that could cause a lawsuit,” Charlie explained, “Somewhat like a dueling club, you are only to disarm your enemy and then apprehend them.” Charlie instructed him and once they arrived in the open hall, he flicked his wand to create a few training dummies. Quickly, he went over the five most popular spells used, and had Draco perform them.

  
“Your posture is great, that’s normally something I have to fix straight off. I know it’s difficult with the dummies but try putting a bit more enthusiasm into your spells,” Charlie explained.  
“Expelliarmus!” Draco shouted, his hand angrily jabbed towards the dummy, who flew off his stand and into a wall.

  
“A little less jabby, we don’t want any injuries if we can avoid it. Our job is not to punish, only to catch,” Charlie explained, and Draco nodded his head, taking the information in and practicing the spells until Charlie decided it was time for lunch.

  
“You’re doing great. We’ll also have to train you to make potions and care for wounded Aurors as well, emergency care only until a healer arrives. But from what Harry tells me, you won’t need much work in that area,” Charlie grinned and slung an arm around Draco’s shoulders.

  
Draco couldn’t help but smile, it felt nice to fit in and receive a compliment for his hard work. Snape was the only professor to ever compliment him, and it was incredibly rare at that. The praise was welcome as he leaned slightly into Charlie’s side and then he stepped aside and tucked his wand away.

  
“We’re allowed out for lunch, yeah?” Draco asked, hoping he could stop at the bakery down the street. When Charlie nodded his head, the two parted way and Draco made for the exit, getting stopped by a familiar face.

  
“Mr. Nott?” Draco asked, the man had bumped into his shoulder on the way past. Theo’s father had been a Death Eater since the very beginning, Draco wasn’t sure how the man was able to avoid Azkaban, but he was hoping to gain intelligence on Mr. Nott that could lead to his arrest. Theo had wanted his father locked up as well but was never able to supply information on the man that was of any suspicious nature.

  
“Mr. Malfoy, working for the Ministry now?” Mr. Nott smirked, “Be careful with who sees you working under Mr. Potter,” the man muttered under his breath, and he was gone within minutes. How did he know Draco was working for the Auror department? Was Draco being threatened? He would make it a point to contact Theo later on and be sure his father was dealt with.  
Draco ate his lunch by himself and shortly after made his way back to Harry’s office, seeing that the man wasn’t in yet. Draco decided to make himself comfortable in an armchair and wait, seeing as Harry should be back shortly.

  
“Malfoy? Potter told me I’d be taking you to your family home in order to collect a few things,” a voice interrupted his train of thought and he recognized Dean Thomas from his year at Hogwarts. Draco nodded and stood up, following Dean to the fireplace.

  
“The floo network is open at the manor, right?” Dean asked him, and Draco nodded his head.

  
“Yes, it’s been open, just under watch for the time being,” Draco explained, and Dean nodded his head, passing the bowl of floo powder to Draco. Draco stepped up and threw the powder, shouting the name of his family home and setting the bowl back on the mantle.

  
“Alright, after you,” Dean gave a grin and followed Draco into the green flames, both of them were thrown directly into the drawing room of Malfoy Manor. How could this bloke be so bloody cheery? He should hate Draco’s guts, but each and every person Draco had dealt with had been nothing but kind to him. Aside from Mr. Nott, that was.

  
Draco took a look around and his throat dried as he glanced at the floor, there were scratch marks along the floor directly in the spot where his aunt had tortured Hermione. He swallowed thickly and tried to control his breathing as he pictured her writhing on the floor. Draco shook his head and waved at Dean. How could this place still affect him? The Dark Lord was gone, there was no longer any lingering dark magic.

  
“Most of my things are in my room and in the study,” Draco explained, leading Dean to the second story of the house. The feeling that overcame Draco was one of grief, his chest tightened as he remembered his last few years of school, and all of the holidays he came home to Lord Voldemort living here. Anyone could imagine how horrible life could get when the darkest wizard in existence lived under the same roof, no matter how larger and luxurious the manor was.

  
“I’m just bringing a few books, an old family ring, and my uh… well my journal,” Draco mumbled the end, thinking Dean would make fun of him. No snide remarks came, Dean only wanted to examine the ring for dark properties, and after a few spells were run, Draco was given permission to bring these things out of the manor, Dean showed a badge to one of the guards upon their exit, and they took the floo back to the Ministry.

  
“Pleasure doing business, I believe Potter said you’re free for the day so we’ll see you back at work tomorrow,” Dean instructed and Draco gave a nod, holding the bag up and nodding at the man in thanks before he made his way down to the lobby of the Ministry, and floo’d back to his apartment. After one day, Draco was so completely exhausted and wanted to collapse in his armchair, but instead he fed his kneazle and changed into sweatpants and a hoodie to go for a run. He had to get in shape for this job to be a reality for him, so this would become his routine. Go for a run, do some simple workouts in his flat, and he should definitely start to eat healthier as well. He wasn’t fresh out of Hogwarts with his slim figure anymore, he was a bit leaner with a bit of pudge that needed toning.

  
Not even a couple days in, and Draco was already fully committed. He ran for a little under two hours, and when he entered his flat, he stopped dead in his tracks at a black envelope on his table. A howler?

  
 _“Draco Malfoy! I hope you are absolutely ashamed of yourself for going back to our family home without consulting me. I am absolutely appalled that you didn’t think to ask me if I needed anything from inside the manor,”_ the howler shouted in his mother’s otherwise dreamy and serene voice, _“And what is this I hear about you working at the Ministry now? I demand you reply to this letter at once and join me and your Aunt for dinner this weekend,”_ the letter continued until it finally burst into flames.

  
Draco let out a sigh and flopped down into his favorite armchair, reaching both hands up to tug at his blonde locks. This was exactly why Draco didn’t want word of him allowing his father to stay in Azkaban to travel around the wizarding community. If his mom sent a howler for smaller matters, she’d surely hex him into oblivion if she ever found out. He had to write her back, to tell her that... well what would he tell her? That he voluntarily became an Auror? That he was coerced? Which story would make the woman happy?

  
Draco pulled himself up lazily and decided to shower while he thought about it, his body was sweaty and sticky, and he was thrilled the second the hot water touched his body. His eyes caught on his arm and narrowed, what would his mother say when she saw his mark was gone? Would she be angry? Or relieved? Draco decided to bite the bullet and turned the water off once he was finished, pulling out a sheet of parchment and a quill.

  
_Mum,_   
_I will see you this weekend for dinner, does Saturday at half six work?_   
_Draco_

  
He decided to keep his reply short, he would figure out how to explain everything to her but until then he would go on with his normal life. Well, new normal, he supposed. After figuring out dinner, he poured a cup of food in his kneazle’s bowl and decided to tuck away into bed. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day for him.


	4. Healing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, an extra upload to make things up to you all!

Draco Malfoy disliked a lot of things, and paperwork was definitely one of them. Naturally when Harry mentioned he would have to learn how to fill out reports, Draco groaned. Harry insisted that it was part of the job and everyone had to learn how to do it, especially if they were injured at some point and were required to do office work.

Draco had thought for sure he would be training with Charlie again, but apparently his combative skills hardly left anything to desire, so Harry had approved him to proceed to the next steps. Draco was thankful though, because he would be receiving his basic healing license in order to perform any first aid or emergency aid needed by the Aurors on his team.

After filling out paperwork for nearly his whole shift, Draco was pulled from the desk by Charlie and led into a small room with a practice dummy that sat in the center on the floor.

“Seeing as I barely passed my exam, we have a qualified healer today to teach you the basics. I’m sure you’re acquainted with Hermione Granger?” Charlie gestured towards the witch and Draco’s heart leapt, why did his heart stop at the mere sound of her name? And why on earth did it speed up when her gaze met his? “I’ll leave you to it then, bring the sheet back to Harry with a signature and your training is complete,” Charlie instructed, stepping out and closing the door behind himself.

Draco nervously turned towards Hermione and met her in the center of the room, taking a breath and plastering a smirk on his face. “I have a feeling I’m going to be seeing a lot more of you,” Draco mused as Hermione opened a case full of different items.

“Well, I am the official healer for the Auror department. The only one, might I add,” Hermione explained, adding the last bit on somewhat bitterly. Draco hadn’t taken a second to think, of course the job was tasking, but being the only one for a department of at least fifty wizards and witches… that sounded like murder.

“So today, I’ll take you through the first aid kit. You’ll have one of your own shrunk down in a pocket each mission you go on,” Hermione told him, and Draco nodded his head. He didn’t want her to feel like she was wasting her time. “We have these bands here should you need a tourniquet, that is something to put pressure on the veins in order to slow bleeding,” Hermione began launching into an explanation.

“I know what a tourniquet is, Granger. Can we just assume I know the basics already; tourniquet, essence of Dittany, Murtlap, chest compressions, the works,” Draco began to list off the uses of the items in the kit Hermione was showing. “Why would you need both essence of rue and a bezoar in here? Surely the bezoar would do the trick. Rue is for long term use, and our kits are only for on-site help,” Draco questioned. Hermione’s eyes shot up to her forehead and she couldn’t help but smile.

“I know, Harry insisted though. And it’s his department so I just supply,” Hermione shrugged her shoulders, “Now that you seem to know the basics, I’ll tell you that your case must be stocked with these items at all times. You may choose to carry other items with you as well. Charlie likes to carry Phoenix tears as a fix-all because he did poorly on the medical exam,” Hermione gave an example, “And Dean Thomas prefers to carry a bottle of meade so as to pour on a wound and stop infection,” Hermione laughed, and Draco couldn’t help but join in with her.

“Draco?” Hermione asked softly, and Draco met her eyes, bowing his head a bit to show he was paying attention, “How do you know so much about all of this?” Hermione asked quietly and Draco bit down on his lip. The clock chimed, signaling that it was the end of the workday and Draco glanced behind him.

“Sign this sheet for me. If you’d like to join me for a coffee, I’ll tell you what you want to know,” Draco couldn’t stop the words from coming out of his mouth as Hermione took his sheet and signed it.

“Where?” Hermione asked and Draco’s eyes widened. He composed himself momentarily before furrowing his eyebrows. “How about I meet you near the visitor’s entrance and we can take it from there?” Hermione suggested and Draco gave a nod of his head, holding the sheet up and smiling.

“Thanks for this. I’ll see you in a few minutes,” Draco told the girl, and rushed to Potter’s office, thrusting the sheet at the man and turning to leave.

“What’s got you in such a rush?” Harry asked with a smirk on his face, “Hot date?” he continued, and Draco felt his ears burn. He shrugged his shoulders and turned to look at Harry.

“I suppose you could say that. More like two old… acquaintances meeting for coffee,” Draco grinned, and Harry nodded his head, waving his hand at the man in acknowledgement.

“See you in the morning,” Harry waved Draco off and the blonde rushed through the Ministry and to the phone booth that sat on the floor of the auditorium. He got in and punched his code in, tapping his foot nervously as it brought him upwards. Draco ran a hand through his hair and checked himself in the reflection before he reached the surface, looking around for a sign of the curly-haired girl.

“Draco,” the man heard his name called from behind and he turned around. Hermione had taken off her white coat to reveal a simple floral sundress and she had changed into a pair of sandals that tied up her ankles. Draco froze at the sight of her for a moment, but soon snapped back to reality and made his way towards the woman.

“There’s a bakery down the road from here, they have coffee as well so I was thinking we could go there,” Draco suggested, and Hermione smiled and nodded her head. They walked silently in the direction Draco had pointed, eventually arriving at a muggle-run bakery, to which Hermione raised her eyebrows, but she followed him inside.

They peered at the menu for a moment, Draco already knew what he wanted but pretended to continue looking until Hermione decided so she didn’t feel rushed at all.

“I’ll have a caramel macchiato and a lemon macaron please,” Hermione smiled, reaching for her wallet. Draco grabbed her wrist and gave her a smile.

“And I’ll have a vanilla latte, and a cherry tartlette,” Draco continued, pulling how own wallet out and releasing Hermione’s wrist, pulling out the appropriate amount of bills to pay, and letting the cashier know to keep the change.

“I invited you, I intended to pay,” Draco told Hermione as they sat down and waited for their items to be brought to their table. Hermione nodded her head and placed her purse in her lap. “So, you wanted to know why I know about healing,” Draco picked up their conversation from earlier and Hermione nodded her head.

“My mum. I learned a lot from her, but she’s been the healer for Voldemort’s side since I can remember. Along with Pansy Parkinson’s mother, which is why we were so close growing up,” Draco informed Hermione who gave a tiny smile. She pictured a little Draco handing his mother supplies as she took care of men in dark robes.

“She must have taught you a lot, I wouldn’t expect you to pick all that up from just watching,” Hermione pressed as their coffee and pastries were brought to them. She used the wooden stick to stir her drink, giving it some time to cool off as she kept eye contact with Draco.

“Yes… she wanted to make sure I could take care of myself if anything happened to me during the war,” Draco informed Hermione, “She officially started training me during our sixth year. I already knew the basic potions, so she taught me some healing techniques and spells that I’d be able to use on myself,” Draco continued, and Hermione nodded, picking at her macaron.

“I’m sorry to hear that. But she sounds like a great mother, giving you tools you need, even if they end up being unnecessary,” Hermione complimented, and Draco couldn’t help but smile at the girl. She was being so kind towards a woman he knew she despised.

“I know you’ve never had a pleasant experience with her, but she truly is a wonderful mother. Everything she did, was to protect her family. My father was out to earn honor for our name, but my mother cared about protecting those she kept close to her,” Draco informed Hermione who nodded her head.

“She did what was right in the end. She saved my best friend’s life, and I could never possibly thank her enough for that. I hold no animosity for grudges I had when I was fifteen,” Hermione giggled softly, sipping her drink and taking a small bite of her treat. Draco nodded his head and smiled.

“So how did you get into healing?” Draco asked, and Hermione’s gaze lowered to the table. She hadn’t been prepared to talk about herself, but eventually cleared her throat.

“During the war I… I was pretty much the only healer of the group. Ron wasn’t nearly as graceful with his wand work, and Harry, well he was always the one getting hurt. I suppose it had to be me, didn’t it? And after that I realized that I was good. So, I just stuck with it,” Hermione explained, her answer a bit less put together than Draco’s.

“It must be nice to have a friend that cares for you the way you do with those two idiots,” Draco chuckled, and when Hermione gave an angry look, he held up a hand, “No harm meant. Just joking around,” he added, and she nodded her head, a smile breaking out across her features.

“No, I suppose you’re right,” Hermione grinned, finishing her macaron and sipping her warm drink. “I do tend to think things through a bit more than those two,” Hermione conceded and let out a sigh.

“I’d better get going, I’ve got a kneazle at home and she’s bound to get angry with me if I’m not home in time to feed her,” Draco gave a sheepish grin and Hermione nodded her head.

This was the first time in a long while that Hermione wasn’t ready to end the conversation. Most encounters she had were short and she begged internally for them to end so she could get on with her life. But not this time, she was left more curious than when she first began her conversation with Draco Malfoy.

“I’ll be seeing you,” Hermione gave a shy smile before they exited the shop together and she tucked into an alley. Draco knew she was gone by the distinct popping sound and a whir of air. He allowed himself a few seconds to reflect over their… meeting? Was this a date? There was no way Hermione Granger would go on a date with him. He let out an exhausted sigh before taking a few steps into the same alleyway Hermione had disappeared into and apparated back home.


	5. The Dinner Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco decides a visit to his mother is in order, especially if he doesn't want to receive more howlers.

Draco stood outside his Aunt Andromeda’s home, a bottle of wine in one hand and a bouquet of tulips in the other. He had been standing in front of the house for close to ten minutes now, giving himself a pep-talk so he could face his mother and come out alive. Little did he know, he was being over dramatic.

After a moment of deep breathing, Draco rose a hand and knocked on the door, which resulted in the door immediately being flung open by his Aunt. She was shorter than he remembered, her dark brown curls had always reminded him of Bellatrix, but her warm, amber eyes had swallowed him with kindness immediately before he had too much time to think about it. He couldn’t help but return her kind smile, glancing around her to look for his mother.

“I wondered how long you planned on standing out there. I had galleons on you leaving though,” Aunt Andromeda laughed and pulled Draco into a tight hug, she closed the door behind him and placed her hands on his shoulders, looking him up and down. “You look like you could use a home-cooked meal,” she tutted and took his hand and pulled him into the dining room where his mother sat with Teddy on her lap.

“Uh, hey mum,” Draco greeted the woman, who picked Teddy up and placed him on the ground before she nearly tackled her son to the ground in a hug.

“I bloody hate when you don’t keep in contact,” Narcissa hissed as she squeezed the life out of Draco. Draco hugged his mother back with almost as much force, he had truly missed the woman, but he hated the conflict of her asking where exactly he was planning on taking his life.

“I’m sorry mum, I’ve just been going through a lot,” Draco mumbled against her head and closed his eyes tight. Her hug was exactly as he had remembered, and when she pulled away Draco realized he had wanted to continue hugging her. He needed that, and already felt a little bit calmer. He was guided to a chair and Teddy immediately crawled up his lap, the young boy pointed to his shirt and told him what color it was, his tiny hand fiddled with the buttons as he told Draco it was a circle over and over again. Draco couldn’t help but smile at how smart the little boy was and noted that his hair was a bright green color. A metamorphmagus? He should have known, Tonks was his cousin and Draco wished he got the time to know her, she had always seemed so brave to him. He pushed the thoughts from his mind and tried to focus on what he did have and not what he didn’t have.

“Okay mister, talk! I saw a photo of you in the prophet at the Ministry, then a couple of days later you were coming out of our manor,” Narcissa started in on him and Draco nervously threaded a hand through his hair. He left it down, his mother preferred it that way surprisingly enough. The man took a deep breath before delving into the tale of how the great Harry Potter had called upon him and asked for help. It was no longer a secret that his mother wanted all previous Death Eaters dealt with, seeing as the only ones who evaded Azkaban were the ones who took a deal to bring her husband down and keep him locked in a cell.

“So, you’re helping with information? And what sort of protection is the Ministry providing you?” Narcissa asked as Teddy played with a few loose strands of Draco’s hair. Draco couldn’t help but let out a laugh and shrug his shoulders.

“Well, I have got Auror training now, and I’m sure if I floo straight into the Ministry any attackers wouldn’t follow me there,” Draco mused. He knew it was practically a mother’s job to worry, but she should also use her brain. He then remembered a story she had told him right after the war ended. She was almost sorted into Ravenclaw, and as she looked back now she wished she had let the hat sort her there, but she begged and begged for Slytherin so her mother wouldn’t be ashamed of her.

“Draco, you know I worry about you. It’s difficult when you push me away most days and shut me out,” Narcissa complained, taking a sip of her tea.

“I know mother, I’ll try and write more. I promise I will, but work has got me so busy, and once I’m trained, I’ll be working so many different hours and going on surveillance missions. You’ve got to understand that I won’t have time every day to write you,” Draco let out a sigh and mumbled a small thanks when his aunt set a cup of tea in front of him. How did she know how he took his tea? He smiled and took a sip, eyes fluttering shut as he allowed the drink to warm him up.

“And as for the manor, I was allowed supervised access. I could try to ask Potter for a favor if there’s anything you need but they inspected everything I took out,” Draco explained and immediately stood up to take the plates from his aunt to help set the table.

“Thanks, dear,” Andromeda smiled and went back to her cooking. Draco didn’t realize he would feel so happy to see his mother here. She seemed so much more pleasant and relaxed than she did while Draco remembered living with her.

“Hey mum, one question I did want to ask you. Why is Mr. Nott threatening me at work?” Draco asked the woman who choked on her tea and set her cup down.

“He did what?” Narcissa nearly screeched, “Oh, I will have a word with him, and he better pray to Merlin he comes out alive,” Narcissa stood up and whipped out her wand. Draco grabbed her wrist and immediately shook his head.

“Mum, I can fight my own battles, believe me. I was just wondering what it was all about,” Draco asked and eventually was able to calm his mother down enough to get her to sit in her chair.

“He could be trying to restart the whole thing; I remember he was always looking for leadership opportunities. What better opportunity than when Voldemort is finally gone?” Andromeda spoke casually, both Draco and his mother wincing at the sound of his name.

“I think you’d better have someone look into it, Draco, try talking to Theo,” Narcissa suggested and Draco nodded his head. He had nearly forgotten that he was going to write to his friend, but maybe it was a good idea to ask the boy to meet with him so they could talk in person.

Shortly after this conversation, dinner was served and they ate mostly in silence, other than the occasional chatter from Teddy, who was able to feed himself and insisted that his grandmother and great aunt let him do so. Draco couldn’t help but smile at the boy’s independence as he finished up what had been on his own plate.

After the family spent some time chatting, Andromeda flicked her wand and moved their plates to the sink before setting out tea. That meant that soon, Draco would be free to go home. He had to do some self-convincing, but he also decided to write Theo and ask about anything suspicious going on with the man’s father. As Draco finished his second cup of tea, he wiped the corners of his mouth and stood.

“I do think I should be getting home,” Draco finally announced with a sigh as he reached a hand towards his aunt first, helping her stand and pulling the woman into a hug. He repeated this motion with his mother, holding the woman for just a little bit longer and pulled away to look at her. “I promise I will try to write you more often, so long as you promise to understand that I have a job now and get busy every now and again,” Draco told the woman who gave him a warm smile.

“I love you, my dear,” Narcissa grinned and held Teddy’s hand as the three of them walked Draco to the door. The man stepped out and glanced around him before he apparated back to his flat and immediately reached down to pet his kneazle.

“Hello dear, we have some business with Theodore,” Draco murmured softly before he stood and made his way to his office. The man sat in his chair and pulled a roll of parchment out of the desk drawer, along with a quill and pot of ink.

_Theo,_

_Just wondered if you would like to meet for lunch sometime this week as I have a few things I would like to ask you. It’s not official Ministry business, so it’s nothing that is under investigation, I have just had a bizarre week and would like some answers._

_Hope you’re doing well, write back as soon as you’re able._

_Draco_

Draco let out a nervous sigh as he signed his name on the bottom of his letter, folded the paper and put it into an envelope. After a moment’s hesitation, Draco found his owl and attacked the letter to its leg before he fed him a treat and saw him fly off.

Draco took a long breath in; he ran a hand through his hair and finally made his way to bed when his owl disappeared into the night sky. Had he really been at his aunt’s that long? No matter, he changed into more comfortable clothes and tucked away under his blankets with a tired sigh.

* * *

The next day came and went. Draco went for a jog in the morning, desperately trying to keep routine though his body screamed at him to stop with every pace. After his jog, Draco fed his kneazle, then he took his morning coffee and the Daily Prophet and made himself comfortable in his armchair. Medusa finished her food and curled up around Draco’s feet with a content purr. It was late September, and the weather was getting cooler with every passing day, and on this very Sunday morning Draco had chosen to light his fireplace.

On his end table was the pamphlet that Hermione had given him with all of his information about his appointment that was scheduled for this Tuesday evening after work. In fact, she had instructed him to just show up any time he was ready after he left. Little did she know, he would try and weasel his way out early so he could see her again.

Soon enough, Draco’s day of lounging around had come to an end; with a quick shower, Draco cleaned up and then tucked into bed just as he had the night before. Medusa curled at his feet and he fell asleep only to dream about several possible outcomes from the procedure to remove his dark mark. Would it leave his whole arm numb like it had when he tried to remove it? There was one way to find out.


End file.
